Xeno? I only know one Xeno. “Really? What’s your favourite show?”

“You doubt my identity?” He laughed. “You know I love the warrior princess.”

I extended my hand, “Pleasure to you, Xeno.” We shook and he invited me in.

“Guys, the hero’s here,” he announced, and they turned to see me. But one in particular was rather excited.

“Ban?!” he said, jumping over the cough and running up to me. He pulled my cheeks, “My love! You’re everything I imagined you to be! But you need a haircut dude…”

“Says the guy with long flowing hair.”

“Did you guess who I am yet?” He beamed, teeth in full show.

“If you’re not ItHertz, then hell must’ve frozen over,” I chuckled. He matched his online persona perfectly.

“Aww, that’s so sweet. Hey, ByteMe!” He turned around to yell at a woman, “I think I’m in love!” What a comedian he was. And he’d always pester her too. They were polar opposites, but they were the only two to meet each other in person, until now.

“Well, I guess your cover’s blown,” I commented, and shook her hand.

“Yeah, whatever. When are we gonna get down to business?” Her indifference was infamous, and the username ByteMe truly suited her.

I walked to the other two and greeted them. “Hey, nice to meet you.” I shook a woman’s hand. She looked to be the oldest of us, somewhere in her forty’s. She nodded, saying “likewise” under her breath. “Oh, so you’re Cryptic. Makes sense. So then, that leaves Backslash, huh?”

I walked over to him and shook hands. “You’re nice to meet. I-I mean it’s nice to meet you, Ban.”

“You too, buddy. Did ItHertz freak you out too?”

“K-kinda, yeah,” he said, quite nervously.

“Hey! That’s not nice! No pizza for you guys!” ItHertz snapped back, grabbing up the boxes of pizza and pretending to run off with it.

These people were the ones that showed me the ropes and helped me out when it came to hacking. Most of the things I know came from that group, LocalHost. We’d share whatever tools we made or came across and developed an arsenal of decryption software.

“So, what’s up? Why are we here?” I asked them.

“You ain’t been online in forever, my dude!” ItHertz bit down on some pizza.

Xeno, the one who first started the group, nodded in agreement. “You’ve been all over the news.”

“You build stuff for UGO right?” ByteMe poured some soda out for me. She might act tough, but she was a sweet person at heart. “Focus on that then. We’ll do all the software stuff. We’ll send over an app to you.”

“Yup, Backslash made it,” ItHertz pointed out, his mouth full of pizza, “so you know it’s secure as shit. Like a nun’s panties.”

I guffawed. He certainly had a way with words. But he was quite right. No one in the group was as paranoid as Backslash when it came to securing all our conversations and making sure all the not-so-ethical hacking we did was untraceable. We’d have probably been busted by now if not for him. Dare I say he was the most advanced out the group.

“Thanks guys. Really, I appreciate it. But, uh, listen. This is real. All of this is real. Cennet is a psychopath, a damn smart one. If any of this comes back to any of you, I cannot guarantee your safety. Thank you, for setting all this up, but we shouldn’t–”

“It’s already been decided,” Cryptic spoke up.

“You need our help, Ban. Just accept it.” Xeno urged me. But deep inside, I couldn’t help thinking that Cennet might get to them, just as he did my parents.

“Listen, you little shit,” ByteMe grabbed a slice, “we’re doing this whether you want us to or not. So, if we get murdered and you didn’t work with us, I’ll haunt your ass after I die. Now, eat,” she handed me the slice.

I opened my eyes wide, “Yes, ma’am,” and accepted the pizza.

“Don’t call me that. That’s for old people.”

“Huh? But you are old!” ItHertz tilted his head in faux-confusion and she literally tackled him to the ground.

“I’ll give you guys all I have on Cennet. Hopefu–”

My phone rang. It was a blocked number.

“You’re not at home, or your work. Or any of the UGO facilities. You’re a hard person to track, Mr Ugo.”

Rosa… “I find that hard to believe. How can I help you?”

“There’s been a development. TEO Serrette will contact you in the morning. Be cautious, Mr Ugo.”

“Is that so? Well, thank you for your concern.” I moved the phone from my ear. “I should, probably get going. Send over that app, will you Backslash?” I took my leave and sped home to listen to the recording of the meeting.

My mug of coffee was almost spilled halfway through the recording. They were quite actually discussing the chances that I’d be allied with Cennet, all in a ploy to execute some grandiose scheme. They were speaking about how to handle me, detain me, and should I resist, if to kill me. A chill ran through my spine. Of all the things I’d been through, I could say almost assuredly that Cennet didn’t actually desire to kill me. Yet, actual law enforcement agencies that were tasked with holding the hand of justice close to their hearts were seriously considering me as a threat to national security. So, when she asked me if I was allied with him like that… I realised Rosa’s nonchalant and direct question about my alleged allegiance was actually to inform me that it was indeed a matter they felt they had to bring to the table. Even though Rosa had power above them all, it was still handled democratically.

Hmm. My weapons are the issue. Indeed, the TEO and military could be much better killers if they so choose, but fact remained that my weaponry was built on UGO energy, a font of power that showed unmatched potential. They fear I’d use it wrongly? As much as I hated to admit, that fear was only fair. In the end, all they see is an unstable mind with more power than he should have.

I thought about how to protect myself from them. I thought about asking my mom’s attorney and giving him this recording, but it would be dismissible in court because I wasn’t supposed to record in the first place. Heck, I even thought about finding White and making even more tech to ensure I wouldn’t be killed even if they tried. How do I tackle this? I questioned myself, then questioned what Rosa meant by ‘a development’. Does it have to do with them suspecting me? Are those two… Thoughts of TEO director Franklin Donovan and minister of defence Michael Asher passed on my mind. It would make sense that they’re the ones responsible for pushing the idea of me being a danger. How do I better myself to fight Cennet whilst looking less dangerous?

A headache smit me across the head thinking about it. It was damned stupid. Just like that, I began losing faith in the system I thought would be out to protect me. Shit, they couldn’t even do anything to protect me from Cennet in the first place. Am I really alone in this? There’s no one to…

I slammed down on my knee to banish the thought with the prevalence of pain. Tumbling back down into that depressing state was something I couldn’t afford. Of course, you’re not alone, J. There’s LocalHost backing you. Rosa might not be totally trustworthy yet, but she hasn’t done anything to make you think otherwise. The Andino brothers both have your back. You could probably ask Sean and Randy for favours as well. I took a deep breath. And at the end of it all, you have Anna. My eyes darted towards the clock. The night was young, and I felt an overwhelming urge to begin cooking up new recipes and revising old ones.

But first, I had to get dinner.

After Anna and I ate, we lounged on the sofa, watching some drama she’d been hooked on. I laid down, using a leg of hers as a cushion. “I’ve been thinking. Should I call you mom, or Anna?”

She paused the show and eyeballed me, pushing a bit of her blonde her behind her ear. “I, don’t know, actually.”

“Whatever I feel like, then. Listen, um, we should have a party or something. You, Marissa, your parents. The Andinos. TEO Sean Murray and Randy Mortierre. Even UGO staff. Just, everyone.”

Her eyebrows curled, “What’re you up to?”

“Nothing. I just feel like, if I don’t do it soon, I won’t be able to do it in a very long time.”

She groaned. “Fine… But only because you’re mixed up in all this crap.”

“End of the month?”

“Sounds good.”

“Great!” I hopped off her and stretched. “Do I have permission to spend the night in the lab?”

She twisted her head in quite the condescending way. “You’re pushing it.”

“I know,” I gave her a sly grin, which I’m sure didn’t help.

“Give me a reason to allow it,” she sat up and steeled herself against me. My grin faded, and I became serious, or rather, a bit sympathetic that she’d have to hear why. But I figured keeping her in the loop of things would be for the best.

“There are people who think I’m dangerous, people in high positions. And as such, they are holding talks on whether or not to view me as a threat. I doubt it will go through, but worst-case scenario is they shoot me if I become a threat. And I don’t mean shoot to subdue.”

“I’m sorry?” she said, hardly believing a word of it.

“Here is the recording for the rest of that meeting we were in. The only people who know of it are me, you, Sean Murray and the Home Secretary. I want to go to the lab to work on better equipment, to ensure they couldn’t kill me even if they tried. Do I have permission?”

She took a deep breath. “Do what you must.”

I nodded at her, and left before she changed her mind.

My TK followed close behind as I zoomed through the wintry skies. After sending over what I had on Cennet to LocalHost, I asked them to look for White and crosscheck it with Vasc.

For the rest of the night, I focused on improving my own equipment. The last scuffle that Cennet and I had, he was easily able to defang the TK. Revisions for it would take much too long. I sat in thought. Maybe the issue is trying to fight him in his field. There’s no way I’m winning a fistfight. Ranged then? I scoffed. All I had was Z-21 and some grenades. There’s no way he would fall for grenades. Constantly firing Z-21 would be, not too convenient, I thought. It was, in essence, a sword after all. That’ll be a great deterrent if he gets close though. Hmm, but if I’m to stay ranged, I wouldn’t be able to get too far away else he’ll just take cover somewhere. A pistol…

I decided on a handgun, although it would have to be a somewhat lengthy one. Eight, maybe ten inches long. Maybe with some extra chin to put a small power core. Hmm. No trigger, in case I drop it. I didn’t want anyone else to use it. That presented an entirely new problem. Only my headgear would be able to operate it. In fact, if that became loose on my head, I’d have a lot of trouble operating Z-21, Grav, and the shielders. That had to be left for another time though. The pistol was my primary objective. I drew up the plans for it, revisiting the placement of components over and over until I found a size and shape that–in theory–would work perfectly. So, I finished the schematic and emailed it off the smithies for a rushed draft.

Now, I began taking a look at my defences. Really, a full sphere of protection from the shielders would be the ideal thing, but no matter how many different methods I tried, the energy would never meld together perfectly. That meant, I had to figure out how to get one shielder to form a complete sphere of energy. Ugh, if I could just get this damn thing to float on… My thoughts swayed.

“Of course! Float! But…” I wondered if using the same metal as the anti-gravitational plate in Grav would allow me to form a little metal ball that could hover right over my shielder. Yet another email would be sent to the smithies. The type of UGO energy my shielder used was a rather safe one, unlike the high-temperature blast of the Z-21 or the TK’s cannons. That meant it was safe to interact with humans. The only issue is, me. Won’t make sense if the energy shield is interrupted by my body or something. It can’t be a sphere at all. That’s just basically a perfect circle. I have to stretch it like the ones on I have on Grav right now. I searched up the correct term. Ellipsoid, huh? Brainstorming things and trying out what I can into the night, I eventually fell asleep.

A knocking on the door woke me up early next morning. I took a look through the peephole. The reporters… I felt horrible waking up so early. They didn’t even give the sun a fair chance to fully emerge.

I hit a button and the door unlocked.

“Wow, that’s some bed hair, kid.” The woman laughed a little.

I motioned them inside wordlessly, wobbling across to the coffeemaker. Not until I took my first few sips of the tantalisingly aromatic drink, did I open my mouth. “Won’t be able to answer all your questions. And I’m not okay with video recording. Voice only, please.”

“Why not? Literally the entire country knows your face,” the cameraman pointed out.

“Fair point. Alright then,” I grabbed a nearby lab coat to fight the air conditioner’s blizzard. They took their time and set up everything. Even brought lighting equipment. I felt a bit sorry for the guy because I knew it probably wasn’t light. “So, who’s interviewing me?”

“Your friendly neighbourhood cameraman, Jack Mendez,” the daring cameraman who never stopped recording while my TK carried him introduced himself with a thumb’s up, peering us through camera’s display screen.

The woman, staring at herself through a mirror and fixing issues I couldn’t possibly hope to notice, introduced herself as well, “Hana Koizumi. Pleasure to meet you, I guess? Don’t you remember me?”

I raised my mug from my mug and ogled her, “Uhh…”

She sighed. “You rescued me from a helicopter crash in North Sky mall. Those robots took people hostage and we were covering the event.”

As I recollected the series of events, my eyes widened. “Wow. You must like helicopters, huh?” I joked. “Maybe you should try out drones.”

“Noted,” she returned to fixing her hair and pulled her phone out. My curious eyes involuntarily glimpsed at the phone, then back at the swirling black of my coffee. Her wallpaper had someone familiar in it, so I gave a second look and who do I see? Backslash?

“Backslash?” Hana repeated.

Crap! I thought out loud. I rubbed my jawline nervously, “Hah, I was just thinking of how to use my sword better,” I told her, trying to play it off and continuing to drink the almost finished coffee.

But she placed her mirror down and faced her entire body towards me. “You know my son, don’t you?”

I almost choked. Why the hell does she know that? Did he tell her? But he’s always so careful. Hmm, how do I answer… “Oh, that’s your son?” I simply feigned ignorance under the pressure. “You named your son Backslash?”

“Don’t play dumb with me,” she folded her arms.

“Geez,” I had to laugh it off knowing I was busted, “you’ve been a reporter for too long if you picked up on that so easy. Hana,” I put my mug down and faced her, as she did me, “how much do you know?”

Thankfully, she didn’t know much. Nothing past simply having knowledge of his username. I politely refused to disclose that information, but I knew she’d probably try to pry it from Backslash at some point anyway. If she found out, she found out, but her involvement did make me worry about her safety.

The interview went on and finished about a half hour later.

“Your guardian has to sign a form for us to do anything with the footage. We’ll put it up once we get that sig.” Hana stretched and stood up.

Later that day, after noon, the smithies finished the frame for the pistol. I promptly flew over and collected it. Looking at it more fiercely back at the lab, I didn’t find much issues. I fitted a power core within it, as well as a dial at the base of its grip to control how much power the core was allowed to expend every shot. Its barrel was a big long, but it needed a certain length to ensure the shot of energy came out as stable as possible.

I’d picked up the metal spheres from the smithies as well, but effectively speaking, focusing on the pistol would be of much greater benefit. I made a call to Samuel Andino for him to secure a shooting range for me. His position as a TEO would buy him an outdoors venue, but would buy me unnecessary company as well. Ferris Andino joined in, which, didn’t bother me. However, the appearances of Esther Serrette and military officials almost made me go the opposite direction.

“Hey, guys,” I greeted the Andinos.

“Ugo. Sorry about this,” Samuel apologised.

“They’re here for what now?”

He walked closer and lowered his voice, “Well, ‘observation’, according to Serrette.”

“Hmm,” I placed a hand on my waist and took a moment to process certain things. “Mr Andino, I’m cancelling this appointment. I apologise for wasting your time and I’ll owe you.”

My TK and I flew to a beach that vehicles couldn’t access. The testing went better than I anticipated. The rounds, so to speak, didn’t stay totally straight after TK analysed their trajectory, but the human eye couldn’t recognise it anyway. The difference only really began showing when the laser-like blast reached far out into the ocean. For the range that it was intended to cover, its aim was almost perfect. After spending most of the evening testing the weapon at various levels of power, I had a lot of notes written down.

At minimal power, I could shoot it one hundred and twenty-five times. At maximum power, I had a paltry fifteen attempts. But there was absolutely no possible scenario where I’d need that kind of power. It was comparable to anti-tank rounds. There were eight levels of power on the dial; minimal power was enough to cause bad burns without killing. The second level seemed like it would kill if aimed certain parts of the body like the head, or may cause the target to bleed out. The third level and higher would definitely kill.

After a bit of target practise with a moving TK, I returned to the lab and pondered what to do with the spheres for the shielders. I kept hitting a wall on how to make them perfectly suspended in the air. Even if I could get that to happen, sudden movement would be an issue. I leaned back on my chair in frustration. What the hell am I missing? Should I even bother? Truthfully, the shielders are good.

I decided to go home when it began getting dark to catch up on some sleep in an actual bed. Ever since the bombing incident, I kind of realised having military escort everywhere I go was nothing more than them monitoring me. That idea was concreted even more after the meeting with Rosa.

I hovered down onto the cobblestone in front my house and realised a few cars outside. Hmm? Estate security would never let anyone in without permission from a resident of the house, with the exception of certain people. My phone vibrated as I touched the front door’s handle. Anna was calling me, but I didn’t answer because I saw her inside with someone else. Unable to identify the person from my position, I simply entered.

As I closed the door, I heard a voice. “Mr Ugo. What a pleasant surprise.”

Rosa sat at the dining table, looking straight at me with that smirk of hers. She sure wasn’t a fan of telling you when she was coming over.

“Jared?” Anna called out and leaned a bit to see me? “Oh. I’ve been trying to get you all evening. You weren’t at the lab either. Where have you been?”

I was about to open my mouth and answer, then I realised I didn’t actually know the name of the beach. “I’d need a map to tell you where.”

“Well, what were you doing then?” she continued. Rosa’s smile grew even more mischievous.

“Doing a field test for some equipment.”

“Really?” she said, totally unconvinced. “Well, I’ll find out after dinner. Go freshen up and join us.”

I chuckled, “Yes, ma’am.”